With a couple of games in the bag, it's time to recap the soccer season.
First, Jeremy and Corbin are still interested in playing soccer. Hooray. Will see how that interest holds up in the hot weather. Both boys will miss about two weeks worth of soccer due to camp, but I think that will give them a much needed break.
Second, both boys are improving their skills. Jeremy is getting better at throwing the ball in and dribbling it. He needs to work on tighter turns and hanging around in his territory. His coach is impressed with the improvement in his listening skills.
Corbin is becoming a strong defender. He is learning how to take the ball from an opponent and how to block kicks.
I'm hoping that the kids want to play soccer for the next few years. It keeps them busy and it forces Tina and I out of the house.
Posted by Adam
Monday, 22 June 2009
Saturday, 13 June 2009
Point Pelee And Back
Who knew that it takes an hour to get to Point Pelee National Park from Windsor?
Corbin spent the day at Cubs camp at Point Pelee (though the camp was an overnight camp, Corbin went for the day only). Tina drove out in the morning.
I was to pick him it up at 3:00 pm. On Tina's advice, Jeremy and I left Windsor at 2:00 pm. Wow that was a long drive. The Shriner's parade in Leamington did not help. The main road was blocked off at the Heinz plant, so (and other drivers) decided to go around the Heinz plant. But guess who was their - the damn Shriner's. Did a U-turn and got back to the main road, which was open at this point.
Arrived at bug-infested Point Pelee just after three in the afternoon. Walked over to the camp and Corbin was doing an activity with his pack. A few of the Leaders were sitting down and said that Corbin had a great time and they had no problems with him. That was good to hear.
The transition home went smoothly. Corbin gathered his back pack and bike and headed to the van.
We stopped at the Dairy Freez in Northridge for some ice cream. Back in Windsor we did a quick stop at Rogers Video to rent some games for the PS2 (the PS2 section is getting smaller by the week - might be time to upgrade).
It was a tiring but uneventful afternoon.
Posted by Adam
Corbin spent the day at Cubs camp at Point Pelee (though the camp was an overnight camp, Corbin went for the day only). Tina drove out in the morning.
I was to pick him it up at 3:00 pm. On Tina's advice, Jeremy and I left Windsor at 2:00 pm. Wow that was a long drive. The Shriner's parade in Leamington did not help. The main road was blocked off at the Heinz plant, so (and other drivers) decided to go around the Heinz plant. But guess who was their - the damn Shriner's. Did a U-turn and got back to the main road, which was open at this point.
Arrived at bug-infested Point Pelee just after three in the afternoon. Walked over to the camp and Corbin was doing an activity with his pack. A few of the Leaders were sitting down and said that Corbin had a great time and they had no problems with him. That was good to hear.
The transition home went smoothly. Corbin gathered his back pack and bike and headed to the van.
We stopped at the Dairy Freez in Northridge for some ice cream. Back in Windsor we did a quick stop at Rogers Video to rent some games for the PS2 (the PS2 section is getting smaller by the week - might be time to upgrade).
It was a tiring but uneventful afternoon.
Posted by Adam
Gooooooooooal!
Jeremy had a soccer game today. Drove out to the Vollmer complex in LaSalle, walked over to the pitch and setup my chair.
Today, Jeremy played defence, forward and goalkeeper. He is getting much better at dribbling with the ball. While in net, he stopped a few shots and made a valiant effort to stop a penalty kick (he did pick the right side though).
On forward, Jeremy actually took the ball to the net and scored. At first, it didn't appear he scored but then every one was walking to the centre of the pitch, so he scored. Yeah Jeremy. He was very excited.
Good game and the kids are starting to get a hang of things.
Posted by Adam
Today, Jeremy played defence, forward and goalkeeper. He is getting much better at dribbling with the ball. While in net, he stopped a few shots and made a valiant effort to stop a penalty kick (he did pick the right side though).
On forward, Jeremy actually took the ball to the net and scored. At first, it didn't appear he scored but then every one was walking to the centre of the pitch, so he scored. Yeah Jeremy. He was very excited.
Good game and the kids are starting to get a hang of things.
Posted by Adam
Monday, 1 June 2009
Electricity Can Be Fun
Just before Jeremy's soccer game, I noticed that the lights in the house were doing 'unusual' things like dimming, flickering and all sorts of good things. Oh oh.
Tried some other switches and the same thing. Hmmmm.
Went downstairs and no breakers were tripped. Aye carumba.
I decided that I had to stay home and do something (rant, rave, worry, cry, laugh and anything else that made me look like an idiot). I told Jeremy to get out of his soccer uniform. He wasn't too impressed but rolled along.
The boys were getting anxious, so Bev took them outside. I called Tina to let her know what was going on. She was busy with her works Annual General Meeting. She called Pam & Chris to see if Chris (an electrician by training) could figure out the problem.
Tina came home and shortly after, Chris and Pam showed up. Chris checked the panel and discovered that one of the two phases into our house was dead. That explains why the lights were flickering. I thanked Chris and Pam for stopping by and immediately called the after hours line at Enwin Utilities.
About 30 or so minutes later, Enwin appeared. He took off the meter and told me the good news - the problem was with their line. His plan was to connect a temporary cable between the meter on my house and the meter on the house next door. A few minutes later another Enwin employee stopped by with the cable. It wasn't a complicated procedure and would take all of five minutes to complete.
Well, five minutes took three hours. Seems the neighbour next door wasn't buying any of it. Her husband was not home and there was a language barrier. The Enwin employee identified himself and even had the lady call dispatch. No go. Time to get the on-call supervisor out here.
About 30 or so minutes later, Val comes by and speaks with the neighbour. The answer remained a resounding "NO" and this time she called the police. Fun.
The Enwin employees and supervisor thought of alternatives. About two hours, I told the supervisor, I could wait until the morning for a new cable to be installed - I had partial power to the house (including the fridge) and it wasn't hot or humid (it got cold and windy). The supervisor thanked me for my patience and left.
As the other two Enwin guys were about to leave, the police showed up. They chatted and the police relayed the neighbours concerns to us. In the name of neighbourhood peace, I said I had no problem with waiting till the next day for a fix. So the police talked to the neighbour again and this time she capitulated.
Enwin guys looked at me and I said "I'm not going to turn down full power". So they got the equipment about 10 minutes later were done and we had full power.
My thanks for the Val and the afternoon emergency guys for their patience.
Now I just have to wait for the yard to be dug up. Exciting times.
Posted by Adam
P.S. A huge "THANK YOU" to Tina. You are awesome.
Tried some other switches and the same thing. Hmmmm.
Went downstairs and no breakers were tripped. Aye carumba.
I decided that I had to stay home and do something (rant, rave, worry, cry, laugh and anything else that made me look like an idiot). I told Jeremy to get out of his soccer uniform. He wasn't too impressed but rolled along.
The boys were getting anxious, so Bev took them outside. I called Tina to let her know what was going on. She was busy with her works Annual General Meeting. She called Pam & Chris to see if Chris (an electrician by training) could figure out the problem.
Tina came home and shortly after, Chris and Pam showed up. Chris checked the panel and discovered that one of the two phases into our house was dead. That explains why the lights were flickering. I thanked Chris and Pam for stopping by and immediately called the after hours line at Enwin Utilities.
About 30 or so minutes later, Enwin appeared. He took off the meter and told me the good news - the problem was with their line. His plan was to connect a temporary cable between the meter on my house and the meter on the house next door. A few minutes later another Enwin employee stopped by with the cable. It wasn't a complicated procedure and would take all of five minutes to complete.
Well, five minutes took three hours. Seems the neighbour next door wasn't buying any of it. Her husband was not home and there was a language barrier. The Enwin employee identified himself and even had the lady call dispatch. No go. Time to get the on-call supervisor out here.
About 30 or so minutes later, Val comes by and speaks with the neighbour. The answer remained a resounding "NO" and this time she called the police. Fun.
The Enwin employees and supervisor thought of alternatives. About two hours, I told the supervisor, I could wait until the morning for a new cable to be installed - I had partial power to the house (including the fridge) and it wasn't hot or humid (it got cold and windy). The supervisor thanked me for my patience and left.
As the other two Enwin guys were about to leave, the police showed up. They chatted and the police relayed the neighbours concerns to us. In the name of neighbourhood peace, I said I had no problem with waiting till the next day for a fix. So the police talked to the neighbour again and this time she capitulated.
Enwin guys looked at me and I said "I'm not going to turn down full power". So they got the equipment about 10 minutes later were done and we had full power.
My thanks for the Val and the afternoon emergency guys for their patience.
Now I just have to wait for the yard to be dug up. Exciting times.
Posted by Adam
P.S. A huge "THANK YOU" to Tina. You are awesome.
Friday, 22 May 2009
Geocaching
While at Camp Cedarwin, Corbin came across some Scouts who were Geocaching. What is Geocaching? According to Wikipedia:
"Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world.
Treasure. Check. Hunting. Check. Game. Check. Electronic device that tells you where you are. Check. Of course, Corbin is going to like this (and so am I - a geek for electronic gadgets).
So I did some quick research and the GPS receivers start from reasonable $150 up to a whopping $600 plus. Wow. There are so many units with different options. My head started spinning.
I found that a new version of "An Idiots Guide to Geocaching" was being released. One day, after soccer practise, I took Corbin up to Chapters and picked up the book. He was excited. I told him that after he was done reading the book and after I had a chance to review the key chapters, that, then and only then, would I look into buying a GPS unit. He agreed.
Corbin has been reading the book. He is not finished yet. I'll have to encourage him, so we can start this new hobby during the summer.
Stay tuned.
Posted by Adam
"Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world.
Treasure. Check. Hunting. Check. Game. Check. Electronic device that tells you where you are. Check. Of course, Corbin is going to like this (and so am I - a geek for electronic gadgets).
So I did some quick research and the GPS receivers start from reasonable $150 up to a whopping $600 plus. Wow. There are so many units with different options. My head started spinning.
I found that a new version of "An Idiots Guide to Geocaching" was being released. One day, after soccer practise, I took Corbin up to Chapters and picked up the book. He was excited. I told him that after he was done reading the book and after I had a chance to review the key chapters, that, then and only then, would I look into buying a GPS unit. He agreed.
Corbin has been reading the book. He is not finished yet. I'll have to encourage him, so we can start this new hobby during the summer.
Stay tuned.
Posted by Adam
Sunday, 17 May 2009
A Day at the Toledo Zoo
Tina suggested that we should go to the Toledo Zoo this weekend. It's been a while since all four of us have gone. They were calling for sunny but cool conditions - perfect zoo weather if you ask me.
We headed out in the morning, leaving around 9:30 AM. Traffic at the Ambassador Bridge was light. We only had to wait a minute or so. No problems at US Customs.
We stopped at Denny's in Monroe. Wow. The place had been renovated. Looks good. The boys asked and received Mac & Cheese for breakfast. Tina and I had the All-American Slam. The food was hot and tasty.
About 20 minutes or so later we arrived at the Toledo Zoo. During fall of 2008, the parking lot was expanded. Much more parking available now.
The cool weather meant that the animals were much more active. The boys were enthralled by two bird 'fighting' with each other. In the Primates exhibit, we were amused by the show put on by four Gibbons as they battled each other for some Romaine Lettuce. A dominant female would just grab the lettuce out of the hands and feet of the other Gibbons. Very amusing. A baby Gibbon moved around looking for her share. It was quite the display.
In the Gorilla exhibit, Jeremy could not believe how close the gorillas were - right at the window. After viewing the fishies and the amphibians, we grabbed some ice cream before Jeremy and I checked out the hippos and the elephants.
We saw a dominant penguin stand it's ground with another penguin.
The polar bears were pacing back and forth and I managed to get some excellent photos. The boys enjoyed the train ride. Jeremy got to see the giraffes and Corbin got to take some pictures.
It was 3:30 PM. Wow time flew by. A quick stop in the gift shop before heading home.
Canadian customs was full, but it only took about 20 minutes to get through. It was a great family outing.
Posted by Adam
We headed out in the morning, leaving around 9:30 AM. Traffic at the Ambassador Bridge was light. We only had to wait a minute or so. No problems at US Customs.
We stopped at Denny's in Monroe. Wow. The place had been renovated. Looks good. The boys asked and received Mac & Cheese for breakfast. Tina and I had the All-American Slam. The food was hot and tasty.
About 20 minutes or so later we arrived at the Toledo Zoo. During fall of 2008, the parking lot was expanded. Much more parking available now.
The cool weather meant that the animals were much more active. The boys were enthralled by two bird 'fighting' with each other. In the Primates exhibit, we were amused by the show put on by four Gibbons as they battled each other for some Romaine Lettuce. A dominant female would just grab the lettuce out of the hands and feet of the other Gibbons. Very amusing. A baby Gibbon moved around looking for her share. It was quite the display.
In the Gorilla exhibit, Jeremy could not believe how close the gorillas were - right at the window. After viewing the fishies and the amphibians, we grabbed some ice cream before Jeremy and I checked out the hippos and the elephants.
We saw a dominant penguin stand it's ground with another penguin.
The polar bears were pacing back and forth and I managed to get some excellent photos. The boys enjoyed the train ride. Jeremy got to see the giraffes and Corbin got to take some pictures.
It was 3:30 PM. Wow time flew by. A quick stop in the gift shop before heading home.
Canadian customs was full, but it only took about 20 minutes to get through. It was a great family outing.
Posted by Adam
Tuesday, 12 May 2009
The Strike Through the Eyes of a 10-Year Old
On the way back from soccer practise, Corbin asked when will he be attending karate classes again.
"Not until the strike is over" I responded.
"Oh, Sensei is on strike' Corbin said.
"No, the Community Centres are closed during the strike" I replied.
Well that made Corbin mad. "I'm gonna call the president" Corbin stated.
"The president of what" I asked.
"The President of America" Corbin retorted.
"That is different country" I said.
"Well, then I'm going to call 911" Corbin shot back.
"You mean 311" I asked. "Ya, 311" Corbin confirmed.
"Well they are on strike too. Some people are working there, but not as many as usual" I explained.
"What the? Then I'll go 311. I used the equipment on the school trip. I sat in a chair and used the headset." Corbin fired back.
That sums up Corbin's view of the strike.
Posted by Adam
"Not until the strike is over" I responded.
"Oh, Sensei is on strike' Corbin said.
"No, the Community Centres are closed during the strike" I replied.
Well that made Corbin mad. "I'm gonna call the president" Corbin stated.
"The president of what" I asked.
"The President of America" Corbin retorted.
"That is different country" I said.
"Well, then I'm going to call 911" Corbin shot back.
"You mean 311" I asked. "Ya, 311" Corbin confirmed.
"Well they are on strike too. Some people are working there, but not as many as usual" I explained.
"What the? Then I'll go 311. I used the equipment on the school trip. I sat in a chair and used the headset." Corbin fired back.
That sums up Corbin's view of the strike.
Posted by Adam
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